RACE OF THE DAY: California-11

California’s 11th district is one of the most competitive in the state, which is one of the reasons Rep. Jerry McNerney (D) is struggling to hang onto it.

McNerney rode into office on the Democratic wave in 2006, defeating seven-term incumbent Rep. Richard Pombo (R-Calif.). It was the second time the men had faced off in the district, which stretches from the eastern San Francisco suburbs to San Joaquin County.

McNerney made his first run against Pombo in 2004, but lost by more than 20 points in a year that saw President George W. Bush get reelected. He ran again two years later, during a more favorable time for Democrats, and unseated the Republican.

This year Pombo tried to re-enter politics, but not against McNerney. Rather, he opted to make a bid for the GOP nod in the neighboring 19th district. He came in third in the four-way primary. 

Instead of Pombo, McNerney now faces attorney David Harmer, who calls the Democrat “adamant in his support for Nancy Pelosi and [President] Obama’s big-government agenda.”

In the 11th district, 39.2 percent of voters are registered Democrats, 39.4 percent are registered Republicans and 18 percent are “decline-to-state.” No candidate can win without support from independents or the other party.

With that in mind, McNerney labels himself a “moderate.” But Republicans are making hay over his vote for healthcare reform and the economic stimulus package.

“It’s clearly going to be a close race,” McNerney told McClatchy Newspapers.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is running a TV ad that says, “McNerney spent nearly $800 billion of our money for the failed stimulus bankrupting future generations.”

The ad also says, “McNerney gave away millions in bonuses for Wall Street’s failure,” which the Democrat’s campaign called “wildly misleading.” It later asked for Comcast to pull the spot.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has yet to match the NRCC in the district — perhaps because McNerney has a sizable warchest. He reported having $1,246,577 banked at the start of July. Harmer, meanwhile, had only $233,046 cash on hand.